Crab Week

Fog

This week was crab week at All Access Boston Harbor and I couldn't have been happier. It is only our third week of programming and the amount of crabs we caught this week was incredible. There wasn't a day that went by where we did not have a single crab in our touch tank. The best part of it all was that most of our crabs were caught while fishing! Do you understand how happy it makes someone to catch something while patiently waiting for a bite? It's as happy as winning a special prize. My prize was seeing the kids' faces light up with surprise and joy.

GIANTS

It all started on George's Island. It was a cool summer day, fog greeted the edges of the island in every direction you looked. There was nothing within eyesight anywhere except the precipitation looming in the air. Fishing was off to a quiet start; the kids sat there patiently waiting for a bite. "AHHHHH", a loud scream interrupts the silence as everyone hops onto their feet to see what all the commotion was about.  And there it was, at the end of the hook grasping on for dear life was a crab. But not just any crab, it was a green crab. Fans of AABH themselves, they often pay us a visit on our sites. The young boy who caught it was still screaming and the crab was still hanging. My co-worker, Patrice picked up the crab and placed it in the tank to hang with us for a bit.

A crowd swarmed over to the tank, including me, to observe the little green guy. There he was, with his pinchers raised ready for battle. I picked him up so everyone would be able to get a closer look and feel for him. Indeed it was a male after all, a few kids speculated and I confirmed it was true after seeing his light, triangle shaped belly. Hands reached from all angles to get a feel of his hard exoskeleton. I began telling the children fun facts about green crabs. Not too long after our first catch, we heard another shout of excitement and as I turned my head to the left I spotted another crab holding onto the line! The cycle began and for the rest of the week we were flooded with crabs on each line.

Over at CHV, dark clouds gathered in the distance. The air was warm but all was still, we could tell there was a storm coming on. Jules and Eric walked up the dock with two giant crabs in their hands. I was amazed, I never knew how potentially large these crabs could get. They took up all the space in the touch tank, just these two creatures. I peeked inside and there they were, two ginormous crabs: a spider crab and a red rock crab. I could not believe how big their pinchers were, it 

was almost intimidating. But I could not help myself, I was desperate to hold it. And that I did! I picked up the spider crab and its limbs just dangling there. "Lol", I thought to myself I recognized this trick. The crab thought he could fool me by playing dead. A real vet, like myself, knew it was a trick so I placed him back into our tank.

Our first day at Spectacle was similar to George's. Everyone was fishing, there was not a sign of any bites yet so we waited and waited until someone shouted, "I caught a crab!". Imani helped the group of girls rail the rod in and on the end of the line was yet another small green crab. The girl walked over with the crab and added it to the tank. It was the first crab we caught and as the groups swapped in and out, we received more. I made sure everyone was able to pet the crab at least once and/or hold it. Before we knew it time flew by and it was the end of our fishing session so we prepared for our favorite game, crab races! I carried the tank over to the yellow line and slowly poured the water out until the crabs were the only things left. I lined them up and out they went, moving quickly with all their legs eager to return to the ocean. I cannot wait to see what other creatures we'll be catching this summer.

                                                   Ready for more, Kharliyah Ortiz, Summer 18

Thunderstorm

Crab Lessons

Exploring

Good morning and welcome back to Piers Park! This Monday morning I spent time kayaking in the Harbor with 3 explorers: Allison, Ken, and Aden. They paddled their way towards the bridge because it was low tide and they wanted to know what kind of life was lurking in the seaweed on the rocks. Motivated by the findings of moon jellies, they were really excited to find something. The waters were calm this morning so it was easy for us to wade around and find sea snails camouflaged amongst the rocks. We were able to find plenty, but we could only reach so far, so we ended with just 3 sea snails along with a side of seaweed and a moon jelly. They were ecstatic to bring it back to the touch tank to share with everyone. The touch tank became a mini aquarium within minutes. We had seaweed, green crabs, baby fish, barnacles, moon jellies, and sea snails! It was so cool to create a tiny environment, the kids insisted it would help give the marine organisms a home-away-from-home feeling. By the end of the day we were all satisfied with our findings and ourselves.

Wonder Ball

Tuesday, I visited Blacks creek for the first time this summer. It was another one of those really hot days but that didn't stop us from beating the heat. We began the day with a game of netball! This wasn't just any regular game of catch, it was trickier. The rules of the game were simple, catch the ball with your net and avoid dropping it into the water. As simple as it sounds, things became a little competitive. We started out with four people, Ariagnna and myself accompanied by Sal and Vanessa. The ball was high up in the air one moment and we raced to catch it the next. It was exciting and fun, which welcomed more people to join us. Eric joined Ariagnna and I had young Zoey join my team. We were all focused on the game that time flew by and before we knew it, it was time to say our goodbyes.

During our second group, we did not have as much people so we spent a little time playing netball but more time invested in our crab trap and touch tank. The kids were a little intimidated by the amount of crabs they were seeing all at once but so excited to see them race against each other. I helped give out a few crabs before they lined up and began the race. There was lots of encouragement coming from the tiny crowd to help the crabs get a move on. My favorite part of the day had to be towards the end when we played wonder ball. If you have ever played it, you know how serious it becomes when there is a small amount of people left. It was like another game of netball but much closer and fast paced. We sang, "The Wonder Ball goes round and round..." and as the tempo picked up it got a little more intense. Then again, before we were able to get to a final round we had to pack up and leave. All in all, this hot day did not go to waste. 

Netball

Sand Castle Building Station

I met up with my little friend, Zoey again, who helped my build a sand castle! It was a quiet and cool morning at Blacks Creek. Far too cool to go into the water so the children decided on playing in the sand. With a mini pail, shovel, and rake in hand I picked a spot in the sand to begin building. Zoey walked over and asked if she could join me, she came up with the idea of decorating the castle and the ground around it to make it stand out. We built one main castle and 7 mini ones around it. Zoey added windows and a drawbridge then I added rocks for a finishing touch.  We then joined everyone to make our way up to play a few games of Gaga ball. We played about 5 rounds before it was time to go and each round became more fun than the previous one. Colin explained the rules as everyone surrounded the pit and they all nodded their heads in unison, indicating they understood and were ready for the challenge to begin. Little Zoey was a little shy, but excited, she was a great sport even when she was tagged out. When the final round came around all the kids had a determined look on their face to win but Colin stood his ground and was the champ by the end.

Zoey & K's Castle

 On All Access,we had the opportunity to bring out and serve 430 people to George's Island. I spent the day fishing with different groups of kids but the one's who stood out to me were two kids named Aliana and Yamil. They reminded me of my younger siblings. It was their first time on George's and their very first time fishing. For 7-year olds they were quite patient for their first time. They listened carefully when I told them about the types of creatures they could catch. They helped me pull up the crab trap and counted all the green, spider. and red rock crabs we had. They took turns fishing, if Aliana was fishing then Yamil would be at the touch tank and vice versa.

Expert Tree Climber

Playing a game of 3 man kickball.

This week the All Access group traveled out to Georges Island for the 2nd time this summer and it was my first time playing sports at the beautiful island. After lunch we headed inside the fort, the "fun way", as my coworker Patrice calls it. We followed her through a small square opening in one of the walls of the ginormous fort and through a series of doors until we exited into the broad daylight of the bridge and into the field. Settling under a large tree near a bench, we plopped our things on the floor and it seemed going up the tree was the plan.

Vince is too strong!

At first it looked like a good, fun idea and so I went along. First up was Patrice, followed by me and Vince was last. It was all fun and games until I got up there, a good 6 ft. if not more off of the ground. Too scared to move I just gripped the large branch I was on. Patrice convinced me to move over to make room for Vince. It was pretty cool after all, but then it was time to get down. I don't know how it came to be me being the first to get down, but I wasn't fully prepared for what was coming next.

You can see the fear on my face!

I was told to go down the way I went up, which I could not quite remember at the moment. Frantically thinking, I crawled onto my belly to get down feet first so that my senior harbor educator Jenn could help lower me onto the bench. As I panicked to get down, Jenn guided me and as I laid sprawled over the bench with my limbs dangling Jenn started panicking! All of a sudden she started yelling, "Oh my God! I can't do it Kharliyah! I'm sorry I can't help you, you have to stay like that!" I couldn't handle it, I was cracking up stuck in the tree slowly slipping. As I got closer to the bench Jenn realized she could help me after all. HOW DARE SHE TRY TO LEAVE ME IN THE TREE!!! I forgive her but I won't rely on getting out of trees through her anymore.

See you next week in All Access
-Khar 

Ocean Critters

A squirting sea squirt!

In addition to our lovely catch of crabs, one of the children fishing on the dock with us caught a tunicate! We don't see those very often so a rush of happiness passed through me as I showed them what it can do. They giggled as I squeezed it and the tunicate sprinkled water onto them.

Our first week at Georges Island was a blast, each day we caught

Jonah & Green crabs in our
touch tank.

endless amounts of green crabs. We did have a little diversity, though, and

caught a Jonah crab in our crab trap! It was huge compared to the

tiny green crabs we had. All the kids that came over to fish were

intrigued by it and asked all these awesome questions such

as,"What kind of crabs are these?", "Is it a boy or a girl?", and I

enjoyed teaching them all the knowledge I myself have learned while working at Save the Harbor.

In fact I even used a field guide book with the kids to identify the Jonah crab we had caught.

Very similar looking to the Red Rock Crab, the guide book

indicated that the crab was a Jonah crab due to the black tips on

their legs and claws, whereas a Red Rock crab only has

black tips on its claws.

Petting crabs

Here's to many more adventures!

-Khar

First Week On All Access

At George's Island

  Our first week on all access was George's island. we was excited to go to the island because it's our first week on are sight and excited to bring other camper's from different community to visit George's island. Last week kids was excited to go to the island because it was there first time going on the boat and first time going to an island. Early on the morning when we was heading to the boat some of the kids thought we was going on a big boat, one of the fancy boats but they thought wrong but they enjoy being on the boat. On the boat some of the kids like to play quack delleomack quack quack quack but they don't want to face the king of the game so some of the kids be calling me to have rematch so they could face the champion but they always lose every time they face me, but at the end of the day they beat me because i'll let them win.

  When we got to George's island some of the kids didn't really want to play sports but we found few of them, some of the kids was interesting going on the adventure at George's and going fishing with Andrea. also, my favourite part of the day at george's island was hearing kids screaming at the tunnel because some of the kids ask us if it was scary going to the tunnel but i told them am not sure gotta find out them self so i heard them screaming it was so funny so they came to me that  wasn't scary but eventually i told them i heard them from far away, so i started joking around with them. Some of the kids wanted to play a game so we started football team i was the captain and christian, i pick the kid with the glasses so i started laughing because i had a kid with the glasses and and few girls on my team but they thought wrong so i told christian never judge the book by it's cover so we started beating them but at the end of the day all of us had fun and experience about george's island.    

George's Sea Stars

One of my biggest goals this summer is to find a living sea star out on the Boston Harbor Islands. I had heard rumors of sightings from other colleagues who had gone out and seen some on George’s Islands. The weeks we have been out on George’s I’ve searched feverishly for the five-armed echinoderms, but have come up with no luck. You can imagine how envious I was when I found out the group at the Courageous pulled some up with their crab traps.

A large group of kids were exploring the water line on Thursday and I joined them in one of my favorite activates. As they looked for sea glass and crab claws, eagerly showing off their findings to their camp mates, and myself I was keeping my eye out for a star. While I was talking to one girl another girl came running but to me “Look what we found! What is it?” In her hand was a sea star! On closer inspection I saw that the sea star was not alive but was the endoskeleton of a sea star that was bleach white. Even though it wasn’t a live sea star it was the first evidence I have personally found of sea stars in Boston Harbor. The founders of the white sea stars promptly decided that the sea star skeleton was less interesting than the shiny, colorful sea glass and tossed it back into the sea.

The hunt will have to continue for the elusive sea stars in two weeks when we return to George’s for the last time this summer. Hopefully this time the search will be more fruitful!

-Nora D.

Skates in Georges?

Hi everyone,

I am back once again. This week, All Access Boston Harbor is out on Georges island once again for the second time this summer. The first week at Georges was great because we did something very new that we had never done before. We caught some striped bass. This week though, it has been a little different. On Tuesday, we did not catch anything and fishing didn't really go as planned because everyone wanted to fish and there was just not enough time for everyone to fish.

Tuesday was a little hectic but with the help of some of the JPAs, we were able to slow things down.
Yesterday (Wednesday) was our second day on the island. Fishing went really smooth because this time I made sure that it was more organized. I only let the groups who signed up for a time slot for fishing, fish and this time we had five different groups. I made fishing a first come first serve basis just to make it fair for every other group and myself as well so I wouldn't have a chaotic fishing moment. Many other groups that wanted to fish, could not fish because all time slots were already taken. When we got to Georges island, I casted a fishing rod which I call my especial rod and in five minutes I had already caught a skate. I was really excited to catch that skate because in all of my three summers working here, no one has ever caught a skate in Georges. It was not a fish but it was something cool and interesting for the kids. Unfortunately, the skate ended up escaping from the hook as I yelled out for a picture from Kharliya. Guess what though? It's cool because when I casted out one more rod, I ended up catching another skate and this time kids were around so I asked one of the kids to help me reel it in. We were able to bring the skate on to the dock when one of our JPAs whose name is Chris helped me take out the hook from its mouth. I was really shocked that we actually caught two skates out in Georges. We have not been lucky with the fishes at all but we have been very lucky with the skates every where we go. I am really looking forward into catching some more striped bass in Georges sometime tomorrow, next week or by the end of the summer. Fishing is becoming a hobby and I am loving it, especially knowing that I run fishing for All Access Boston Harbor.

Keep on fishing !!!

- Andrea Lopes

Firsts During The First Week of Summer

If I wasn't already excited for summer, I am even more excited after our first two days out on the islands. This first two days, we embarked the Provincetown II to reach George's Island. We might have started a new tradition of playing "Quackadilly" on the boat ride over. Both rides over Carlos made it to the final two but was beat out by Andrea the first day and by Cristian on the second.

Our first day on George's, we were met by high heat, a hot sun, and little to no shade. The groups we came to the Island with found salvation in Fort Warren's cool and dark tunnels. Though we had few participants to brave the heat with us, we had great day for ourselves. Kharliyah and I started the day exploring the tide line. I had heard rumors of seastars in the tide zone and was eager to have success in finding some. Though we were unsuccessful in finding seastars we found a killdeer and her two chicks. They were so tiny when I tried to take a picture, they didn't show up! I also saw a pair of ducks with ducklings which were also adorable!

Andrea set the bar high for fishing this summer at SHSB. She helped kids catch not one but five striped bass! This has never happened before at George's Island or any other site. We also caught Red Crabs on the second day on George's. It was fun to talk to kids about what kind of animals crabs are and how to tell a male and a female apart. Rock Crabs are also a native species that have been recently outcompeted by Asian Shore Crabs and Green Crabs, so it was great to catch many of them instead of invasive species.

My favorite part of both days was the boat ride home. Not because the day was over but because it showed the connections the AABH team made with kids. Kids were coming up to us asking to play "Quackadilly" again, talking to the boys about sports, asking questions about the harbor, or seeing a few kids fall asleep after a very active day.

I'm excited to see what the rest of the summer holds!

Nora

First Day Back with Stripers in Georges Island

Hello everyone,

This past Wednesday was our first day back on the islands. Even with the hot and sunny day, I was still getting chills as I was at the Blue Hills Pavilion welcoming the groups of kids and counselors from different summer camps and programs. After gathering every single groups into the big tent, I was shocked to know that we had 345 kids and staffs in total that came out with us on our first day back on the island. YES, I SAID 345! Ain't that amazing? Well I thought it was because I was not expecting that many people to come out with us on the first day. As we walked over to the Common Wealth Pier to get on the Provincetown II boat, I could see the excitement in the faces of many of these kids. After getting on the boat and walking around interacting with the kids, almost all of the Save the Harbor staffs started a game of 'quack-a-dilly oh my quack quack quack' with the kids. Most of the kids fell in love with the game because not many of them had played it before.

Playing 'Quack-a-dilly Oh My Quack Quack Quack' with the kids from
the Bruce School on the Provincetown II

Meanwhile they were playing, I decided to go around the boat and signing up groups for fishing and I remember every single counselor that I approached tell me that "Its too hot we are going to skip fishing for today." So after we got to the island, every group including the Save the Harbor staffs except myself went off to have lunch. I decided to stay on the pier with 5 fishing rods fishing all alone and all of a sudden, there were a group of lucky kids from the Bruce School that came down the pier to fish. I baited all 5 rods and casted them for the kids. As they held the rods, I had a girl that started yelling "Miss, Miss, Miss, I caught something." So I ran down to her and helped her reel in the fish when on the other side I had another little boy yelling "Miss, Miss I got a fish." After helping the girl rail in the fish, we all seen that it was a big striper and unfortunately, it snapped the line. When I ran to the other boy to help him, another striper had snapped the line. Although we were unable to bring the fish out on the dock, they were all excited to see both stripers that were on the line. What made them and their counselor more excited was the fact that I told them that in the past 3 summers, we have not caught a fish there. 

Reeling in "Bruce" the Stripe Bass

Later on around 1 PM, they decided to go to the fort so I stayed fishing alone. I had casted 2 fishing rods and at about 1:35 that same group came back and a few of them started asking "Miss, can I fish ... Miss I want to fish" and I had told them no that we are done fishing because it was almost time to get back on the boat. As that one kid Kevin kept asking frequently, I told Sam to give him a rod that I had casted and 2 minutes later guess what? WE CAUGHT A STRIPER and the kids named it Bruce. This time I was able to reel in the fish 5 minutes before getting on the boat and the kids were finally able to see the fish from a closer angle. One of their counselors helped me take out the hook from the fish's mouth and sent it back to the ocean. Running fishing was the best decision that I had made. Having 3 stripers on the first day for the first time in 3 years at Georges island made me feel very accomplished and good about myself because I had promised the kids that we were going to catch at least one fish and guess what happened? WE DID IT! Overall, Georges island was great and now I am looking forward to a spectacular week this upcoming week at Spectacle island.

Kevin, Andrea and the "Bruce" Stripe Bass

Until next time,

- Andrea Lopes 

Always a blessing to be back on the Harbor

Hi everyone,

 My name is Andrea Lopes. I am 19 years old and a rising junior at Bridgewater State University. I was born in Cape Verde (country on the West Coast of Africa) and moved to the United States 10 years ago. Ever since then, I have been living in Dorchester. This is my third summer with Save the Harbor / Save the Bay and the first summer as a Lead Harbor Explorer. As you all can see, I love this non-profit organization more and more as I keep returning. Being with this organization has helped me develop as a leader and it has also made me realize the type of individual that I am as I have served thousandths of kids now ever since since my first summer. Whenever I am with all of the wonderful Save the Harbor staffs, they never fail to make me feel like I'm not at home. This is a place that I call home away from home in the summer because it is where I spend most of my time. I have been truly blessed to be a part of this organization because not too many teenagers get to experience what I have experienced and continue to experience with the opportunity I have been given. When I first started working here, I did not know anything about the Harbor or the sea creatures. I remember being scared to hold a crab or not knowing how to cast/work with a fishing rod. After the first few days, I can tell you for sure that I became a "fisherman expert" (something Ms. Ryan would call me). Being able to serve all of these thousandths of kids for 3 summers now from different communities and teaching them about the harbor only makes me feel much better.

First week  last summer out on Spectacle Island with All Access Boston Harbor

I had a spectacular week during orientation because this was actually the first time that I was able to attend all 4 days. Being at Georges Island on Wednesday was amazing with a lot of the new summer staffs this year. Being able to teach the other staffs fishing techniques and how to cast a rod as soon as we got off the boat was great because they all learned really quick. Afterwards, David Coffin had a couple of us racing up a stair flight at the Fort to touch a wall but I don't quite remember who was the first person that went. All that I can remember was being the winner and making it up the stairs and touching the wall in 2 seconds beating Sedny as she was leading with 3 seconds. I was shocked because I did not know I would have made it up the stair flight in 2 seconds. The whole day out on Georges on Wednesday was really fun.

Save the Harbor / Save the Bay Summer Staff Orientation 2016

Thursday was another fun day at Carson beach (one of my favorite sites after All Access Boston Harbor). Kayaking with a group of some of the old and new Junior Program Assistants was great and probably the best part of my day at Carson that day. There was about 5 kayaks racing and once we were further out, we all tied our kayaks together and most of us jumped into the water. The water was so cold but once I was in, it felt so good because it was really hot out that day. Overall, orientation was a great way to start off the summer. I can't wait to be back out on the Harbor exploring and serving all of these kids and teaching them new things. 

Until next time,

- Andrea Lopes :)

From The Children's Museum to All Access Boston Harbor

Hey guys it's Jayda again. This week I have had the pleasure of working with the All Access crew at Gerogie's Island. We haven't had very many life changing activities, but I did meet some amazing new people. I've learned Save the Harbor isn't just about aquatic life, but it is also about meeting new people from Boston that you may have never met otherwise. One of these people is Andrea.

She's a great person and she welcomed me to the All Access Team as if I had been there for years. We have spent the boat ride back just sharing stories and having a good time relaxing after a day of work . We also managed to find an odd looking creature that we could only assume was a sea cucumber. 

No one wanted to touch it. But overall it's been great having the best of both worlds by being at the Children's Museum for some days and All Access other days. Until next time. 

~Jayda

George's Island: Where the Fish Look You in the Eye

Hello Save the Harbor Save the Bay followers.  Here is a recap of the first two days of fishing with the All Access Boston Harbor crew on Georges Island:

Day 1:  It was an overcast morning as the P-Town II made its way out past Deer Island and towards George's where the AABH crew had high hopes for landing some fish.

 How big were the fish we were going to catch?

This big!  As this enthusiastic young angler let us know.

As the day warmed up, so did the interest on the dock.  Over forty visitors tried their luck off of the pier.

Everyone enjoyed their experience.  Several counselors made a point of thanking us and reminding us that fishing is about patience and that if they were not bound by their schedules, they were sure that their campers would have kept going at until dusk.  But alas, still no fish.  

Day 2:  Despite forecasts of thunderstorms for the afternoon, a hearty crew of campers joined AABH on our way back to George's.

Here is where things got exciting.  After setting up our rigs on the pier, I took a turn at casting a squid strip into the harbor.  Jigging my bit of squid back to me in counts of three, (1 pull on the line, 2 pulls, 3 pulls, reel) I spotted my line's sinker emerging from the water followed by the soft white strip of squid and then BOOM!  A flounder hit the bait!  I let the flounder swallow it then I set the hook.  But I must have done so too well, for as the flounder approached the surface of the water it swam once to the left, then once to the right, pulling the tip of my rod down towards the ocean - and with an arrogance befitting the cleaver pisces, the fish paused right below my feet.  Looking down I could see the flounder examine me with both of its eyes mounted on one side of its flat body.  Just as I was about to land it - and I swear this to be true - the flounder winked at me, turned its head to the side as if to say "Not today buddy!" And then snapped its whole body out sea making off with my hook still lodged in its mouth, leaving my hookless bottom rig dangling in its wake.  

So I lost the fish - and my hook.  But that didn't keep us from trying to get it back.  Again the afternoon saw many anglers lined up to experience the thrill of fishing.

And again we were forced to make our way back to Boston empty handed.  But I've got news for you fishes: The AABH crew and our campers will not be discouraged.  And as Senior Harbor Educator Lindsay's persistence demonstrates, we fish until we are forced off the pier - and sooner or later we're going to get you.  And this time, it's personal!

John Tobin - George's Island

Guide to Boston Harbor: George's Island

Guide to Boston Harbor

George's Island

Georges Island is a 39 acre island in Boston Harbor, just 7 miles from downtown.  This island is rich in history with many great features.

Visitor Center
Gift Shop
Café
Drinking water and restrooms
Picnic shelters and cooking grills

There are open fields for recreational use and the dock is available to the public on a first-come, first-served basis.  Despite all that, the island's most prominent feature is its historical fort. It is accessible throughout the summer and early fall by ferries to and from Boston and Quincy.   

boston.com

During the days of the original 13 colonies, Georges Island was composed of two major drumlins, and was used for agricultural purposes until 1825.  It was then that the U.S. government acquired the island for coastal defense.

Over the next 20 years the island was dramatically altered, and one of the country's finest forts was built. Dedicated in 1847, Fort Warren's defensive design was virtually obsolete upon completion. However, the fort did not go to waste.  It served as a training ground, patrol point, and Civil War prison that gained a favorable reputation for the humane treatment of its Confederate prisoners. After 100 years of military use, the fort was decommissioned in 1947 and acquired for historic preservation and recreation in 1958.

Today the island is a great place to spend the day and gives its visitors a first hand experience with a little piece of history.  Take time to explore the fort on your own or with a guide.  Follow its narrow halls to it’s different levels, various rooms, and potential dead ends.  You never know where you will end up! Swimming is not allowed on the island, but the docks provide great areas for fishing. Walking into the forts main yard, there is ample room for recreational activities and picnics.  Be sure to be aware of one of the islands most curious inhabitants, its small family of Canadian Geese. 

The geese and rangers are not the islands only residents though; many people throughout the centuries have claimed to have seen a very unique inhabitant roaming the fort grounds.  The ghost of a woman, better known as the
Lady in Black, is said to roam the fort’s dark corridors.

A lady in black, not to be confused with The Lady in Black

The Lady in Black is the ghost of Mrs. Melanie Lanier.  She was the wife of a Confederate soldier that was imprisoned at the fort in 1862.  Legend says that when she received a letter from her husband saying he had been captured, she was compelled to free him. She traveled from Georgia to Hull, Massachusetts where she stayed at the home of a Confederate sympathizer.  She observed the fort with a spy glass and on a stormy night rowed across to George's Island and went ashore. Once on the island, she cut her hair short, disguised herself as a man, and armed herself with nothing but an old pistol.

She slowly made her way around the prison cell walls, whistling an obscure southern tune, until she heard her husband whistle back. Mrs. Lanier was then able to squeeze through the slit-window of his cell.  With the help of her husband and the other prisoners in his cell, they were able to open the cell door and begin their escape.

The group was almost free when the guards were alerted by their commotion.  They ran down a dark narrow tunnel, and where surprised by a guard.  Mrs. Lanier fired her pistol in a last attempt at escaping  Unfortunately, the weapon backfired and the bullet struck and killed her husband. As punishment for her deeds, Mrs. Lanier was condemned to death by hanging. Her final request was to be given female clothing.  After a thorough search of the fort for such garments, all that was found were old black robes. She was executed in these robes and buried on George's Island.

To this day, people still claim to have seen her.  In one account, a shadowy figure has been seen walking the halls, but when followed, is unable to catch up to.  Once, after fresh snow had fallen, footprints in a circular pattern were seen in the yard, but there were no prints leading up to them or away from them.  Today, you can test your own bravery by entering the same dark tunnel where she was captured.  It is said that this is her favorite place to be on the island; enter at your own risk!

Test your bravery in the dark tunnel and plan your own trip with the links below!

http://www.bostonharborislands.org/ferry-schedule-spring-fall

http://savetheharbor.org/ 

So pumped to be back

Hey guys, my name is Esmeralda and this is my second summer working for Save the Harbor/ Save the bay. I was born in Boston, raised in East Boston. Next year I will be a sophomore Exercise Physiology major at Umass Lowell and I absolutely love it there; my plan is to go to graduate school for physical therapy. For the time being though I am beyond excited to be back working with the other staff members as well as several different kids this summer. 

Our two days of orientation were really fun and packed with tons of different things. We went to George's island and did some exploring as well as learned how to tell a story. Being taught how to tell a story sounds a bit strange but it was very interesting thinking about how there are many different approaches on how to tell a good story (I'm not the best story teller so it was pretty helpful). My favorite part of orientation was visiting Georges island because of all the different creepy places that we got to see. Even though I already knew the story of the woman in black I like listening to it being told. it is the perfect combination of a love story, a tragic downfall and creepy ghost ending. I am looking forward to having the opportunity of going on all access to be able to tell someone else that story. As the summer continues I will be talking about my various adventures this summer so keep your eyes peeled for my posts.

Until next time,
Esmeralda

Who Am I?

Macqueripe Beach 

Hello everybody! It's been a while! My name is Ruth Scott and I'm a rising junior at Boston Trinity Academy.This is my second exciting year at Save the Harbor/Save the Bay and it's off to a great start! I am 16 years old and live in Dorchester with my siblings and parents. I am a competitive swimmer for Dolphin Swim Club and the Flaherty Dolphins and I also dabble in varsity soccer. Marine biology has always been an interest of mine with all of the contact I have with water and such so it's great to be back out on the harbor this year gaining more knowledge about my home, Boston. I also got the chance during February break to see some marine animals in the Caribbean. Since my mother is from Trinidad we traveled down to enjoy some sun and get away from Boston's brutal winter. I had a great time hanging out with the animals of the sea and enjoying the warm water. (It is really unbelievable how warm the water is in Trinidad, it's bathing temperature!) If anyone wants to take a trip to the Caribbean, I recommend Trinidad and Tobago. It's a beautiful island paradise with so many cultures mixing together.

Squantum, Quincy (2015)

            We started off the summer with an orientation trip to George's Island (one of my favorites!) It was great to return and see some of my old haunts. Including the infamous David Coffin, I did not go flying at this meeting although it did cross his mind. The parade ground was completely goose free which was mind blowing, that field ALWAYS has geese. We also saw some new passages that I wasn't able to explore last year. Orientation went so well that there are no doubts in how this summer will turn out: FANTASTIC!
           I cannot wait to get to my site and start all the fun. The kids of Boston and the surrounding areas will not know what hit them! Save the Harbor/Save the Bay 2k15 will be AMAZING!
Super excited,
Ruth Scott

the Parade Ground at George's Island, FREE of goose poop!

Ready For Summer!

Hi everyone!

I am Justin Warrener, and this is my first year with Save the Harbor/Save the Bay as a Senior Harbor Educator. I grew up in Glocester, Rhode Island and they don't call it the ocean state for nothing. I spent my summers all over the beaches and islands of Narraganset Bay. Whether I was swimming, digging for clams, or crawling over the rocks and catching crabs with hot dogs, I was always having fun exploring the coast.

Orientation Day 4: Nora Dooley's pirate show (I'm the one in blue).

These summer beach days really inspired my love of the sea, and when I started college at the University of Rhode Island I pretty much jumped into studying Marine Biology. This ended up providing me even more opportunities to explore the ocean and study the life within it, whether through class boating trips, field studies on the salt marshes and beaches, or SCUBA diving trips. Since my graduation last year, I've had the chance to volunteer with Save the Bay in Rhode Island helping to run a small aquarium in Westerly, RI where I was able to share my love of the sea and the life within it to children and visitors of all ages.

I am super excited for this summer, where I'll be able to explore a whole new harbor and share it with everyone! We are going to have a ton of fun!

Orientation Day 3: The whole Save the Harbor/Save the Bay Summer crew on Georges Island!

Call Me Tobin!

It’s 7:00PM on a Thursday and I have just returned home.  After having walked the distance from Sullivan Square station to my house, my knee is killing me.  I reach down into the knee-side pocket of my cargo shorts and I find that the cause of my misery is a bale of fishing line – and I smile. 

My name is John Tobin and by profession I am a teacher of mathematics and earth science, but by interest I am a teacher of fishing at Save The Harbor Save The Bay.  This is my first summer with the organization and I am happy to say that it is already off to a great start – and that all the fishing rods are rigged appropriately.

My first duty as Senior Harbor Educator came on Wednesday of this week when I had the opportunity to conduct a Fishing 101 lesson on George’s Island.  During my lesson, I went over drift rigs and float rigs – how to cast and how to reel in a lure - and most importantly how to catch fish safely and responsibly.

Fishing is an art of words.  The more you fish, the more you talk about fishing, the more you talk about fishing, the more you listen to others talk about fishing, and the more you listen, the more you learn.  I cannot wait to spend the rest of this summer letting students and their families in on those secrets. 

PS: That's me in the grey.